1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a protection suit comprising a poncho-like part and a protective hood joined thereto, and also to a method of manufacturing such a protection suit.
2. Description of the Related Art
A poncho or cape is usually in the form of a rectangular, flat sheet with a slit or opening for the head. When the flat sheet is worn it hangs down from the shoulders, over the arms, covering the entire upper body.
The fundamental idea of such a poncho is thus, with extremely simple and inexpensive means, to be able to produce an article of clothing to provide protection against rain and cold, for instance.
These garments have been developed to provide protection for the head also, by sewing on a hood. However, the original product thus becomes considerably more expensive due to the extra work step required to join the various work pieces.
Traditional mass-production of collars, necks and hoods is achieved by joining flat work pieces, the meeting edges of which are the same length but of different shape, thereby giving the flat sheet a third dimension. A shape fitting the body is thus obtained, but at the price of complicated manufacturing technology, several work steps and increased difficulty in packing such products flat to minimize their volume.
Ponchos of various types are sometimes used as protective equipment by the armed services. They must therefore be extremely inexpensive to manufacture in large quantities, packable to absolutely minimum volume and must be of a material weighing as little as possible. Such a product, besides its function as personal protection, must sometimes also be suitable for combination with larger expanses of material to protect tents and other equipment.
The construction of the protective hood and the manner in which it is joined to a poncho produced from a flat sheet of material is however of decisive significance as to whether such a product is cheap to manufacture or not, without its function being lost.
Chemical warfare places further demands on the construction of such protection suits, and particularly on the design of the protective hood so that it is able to seal efficiently against a protective mask while still permitting certain movement of the head. Such a protective hood must thus give complete coverage around the neck and the whole head, but yet leave room for both a helmet and a protective mask.